This invention pertains to the art of laundry pressing systems having carriages which support a buck or mannequin and which are moveable between dressing and pressing positions. More particularly, the invention pertains to an indexing mechanism for moving and guiding the carriage between the dressing and pressing positions.
In such laundry pressing systems, the carriage is moved between its dressing and pressing positions a distance sufficient to assure that the operator stationed at the dressing position remains a safe distance away from the pressing position. It is known in the prior art to have such carriages mounted upon one or more guide rails and driven between the dressing and pressing positions by motor driven cables, chains, or fluid cylinders. This invention is directed to a fluid cylinder or actuator driven carriage arrangement.
In such prior art systems in which a carriage is moved between its dressing and pressing positions by a fluid cylinder or actuator, exceptionally long stroke cylinders have been required in order to drive the carriage between its dressing and pressing positions. Such long stroke cylinders generally require larger work areas, are more expensive to set up and operate due to the required stroke length of the cylinder, and are prone to malfunction due to bending stresses on the long piston rod of the cylinder.
It is the object of the present invention to accomplish the movement of the carriage between its dressing and pressing positions by use of a fluid actuator cylinder having a relatively short stroke. In order to accomplish this objective, a short stroke cylinder is used with a motion transfer guide linkage that produces an effective long travel of the buck or mannequin with a short piston stroke. Therefore, the arrangement in the present invention is capable of moving a carriage between a dressing position and a pressing position through a distance equal to that known in the prior art, but with a relatively short stroke cylinder and with very simple, inexpensive components.